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Harry Redknapp
"'Lor' luv a duck! I'm the king, Know what I mean?"
"Samassi Abou don't speak the English too good."
"I will now spend a short period of time to rest, recharge my batteries before contemplating my future."
"Jermain Defoe: He's cocky and arrogant but show him a goal and he's away, like a wind-up toy.."
Harry Houdini Redknapp (b 1947), 'Arry Up, Public enemy number 1, the rumble in norf london and trouble in the toilet, but usually referred to as the guvner is an ex-eastenders star, now acting as the dictator in charge of non-gooner North London United. The old man's managed (read "sponged off") a right load of terrible football clubs, and was responsible introducing Croatian war criminals into the Premier League, under the disguise of being players. He is probably best known for managing Portsmouth, then moving to their arch-rivals Southampton, only to do a completely unexpected U-turn (read "entirely predictable U-turn" because money was involved) and return to Portsmouth. While in his second spell at Portsmouth, he managed the side to win the FA Cup 2007-08 in what is described by many as probably the worst FA Cup final in living memory. This was his first and probably only major trophy as a player or manager, unless you count his Nobel Prize for being a greedy bastard. He also goes by the nickname 'bell end'.
Redknapp's insufferable and eternally injured pundit of a son, Jamie Redknapp, played under him at A.F.C. Bournemouth|and at Southampton. Redknapp junior is married to ex-MTV eye candy singer Louise. Redknapp senior is also uncle to Chelsea F.C. player "Fat" Frank Lampard, who played under him (although how far "under" is the subject of much debate) at West Ham United F.C.
Early life[edit | edit source]
A flush-faced Harry was born in London at a very early age. A love of tomato sauce with his eggy soldiers, along with several nasty bouts of "runny Bottom", saw him adopt the name of Red Nappy, which he then shortened in his teen years to avoid confusion with a horseracing syndicate. With his bedroom window within earshot of the football chants of Tottenham Hotspur, young Aitch grew to loathe the songs of Chas and Dave. In a recent interview, Harry revealed to a smug-faced Peers Morgan that the Labour education system in the 1950s left him unable to read, write, string a coherent sentence together, correctly pronounce words beginning with an "H", or handle money of a lower denomination than £50, particularly if it wasn't off shore and the property of a canine. With career prospects poor or none, Redknapp decided that armed robbery was for him and so began a career as a professional football manager.
Playing career[edit | edit source]
Redknapp's playing career began at West Ham United F.C. After coming through the youth ranks as a whinger at Upton Park], he signed exceptionally lucrative professional terms as a 17-year-old in 1964 and went on to make 149 top flight appearances, scoring eight goals, and off-loading his grandmother to some agent for a few thaaasand bob.
In 1972, he transferred to A.F.C. Bournemouth , where he spent four years, diligently counting his money. He then claimed to be entitled to a testimonial pay-off, despite only playing once for Brentford F.C. in 1976 in a Division 4 game against Aldershot F.C. (who since went bust).
Management and coaching career[edit | edit source]
Seattle Sounders[edit | edit source]
Nope, me neither ! Went bust though. Deserved that with a team name like that.
Bournemouth[edit | edit source]
In his first season at the helm, it suddenly dawned on Harry Redknapp that he had come to the wrong club; instead of joining Eastbourne, he erroneously became manager of Bournemouth. This presented the plucky, but nonetheless greedy Harry with his first challenge; namely, if Bournemouth hasn't got as many pensioners to swindle out of their cash as Eastbourne, "How the fackin' 'ell am I gonna make it pay?" Obviously, he'd never heard of Harold Shipman.
In what was to become his typical managerial form, he barely helped Bournemouth escape the drop to the bottom rung of the Football League. Bournemouth also caused a shock in the FA Cup when they beat holders Manchester United in the third round. Nothing sinister, or "brown-envelope" related about that shock result.
Inevitably, Bournemouth were relegated at the end of their third season. Bournemouth were in 13th position on 3 March, but injuries, and sales of all the players, their grandparents (including gold teeth, chrome hip joints etc) which depleted the squad, combined with a catastrophic loss of form (which was solely down to the players of course), meant that they won only won one more game for the rest of that season, and were relegated on the 5th of May after a 1–0 defeat at Dean Court against Leeds United A.F.C.
In June 1990, whilst watching the Football World Cup 1990 in Italy, Redknapp was involved in a car crash with Bournemouth's managing director Brian Tiler , who died along with four other people. Redknapp made a full recovery (apart from being permanently without his senses of smell and choice of suits) but became disillusioned with the lack of funds and limited resources at his disposal and resigned at the end of the 1991-92 in English football season. Bournemouth have been servicing their huge debts ever since.
West Ham United[edit | edit source]
For the next season he was appointed assistant manager to Billy "Uni" Bonds] at West Ham United F.C., another of his former clubs. However, when in August 1994, Bonds left after a major disagreement with the board, Redknapp claimed Bonds' salary as well, and was appointed manager of his hometown club.
Redknapp helped to stabilise the club and establish it in the Premier League, and also helped bring through a number of young players from the club's The Academy of Football, including Rio Ferdinand, Joe Cole, Michael Carrick and his nephew Frank Lampard coming through the ranks. However, Redknapp also made mistakes in the foreign market with the signings of Marco Boogers and Florin Raducioiu proving to be expensive flops - but according to him, they weren't his fault, as they'd only got 2 points from 42 games before he took over.
Nevertheless, West Ham finished eighth in 1998, and then enjoyed one of their best seasons when finishing in fifth place and qualifying for the UEFA Intertoto Cup. In the 1999-2000 in English football, West Ham won the Intertoto Cup and qualified for the UEFA Cup but failed to match their performances in the league, which could be put down to the extra games played. Redknapp left West Ham on 9 May 2001, one game before the end of the 2000-01 in English football. For some time it was unconfirmed whether he resigned or was sacked but Redknapp shed new light on the true circumstances in October 2007: {{quote|"The chairman Terry Brown, quite rightly thought I was a cunt and he sacked me. I fink it was summit to do wiv my greed rivalling his. "There's room for only one greedy fucker at this club - saggy features", is what he told me."
West Ham have been servicing their large debts ever since. A pattern was emerging.
Portsmouth[edit | edit source]
Again, failing to sign for the rich, coffin-dodger haven that is Eastbourne, Redknapp soon re-emerged as Director of Football at Portsmouth F.C. in summer 2001. However, after the club's poor form he replaced manager Graham "Well, she looked over 16 your Honour" Rix] in March 2002. Redknapp managed the club to the Football League First Division title in the 2002-03 in English football season, gaining promotion to the Premier League, ironically replacing his former club West Ham. Again, no brown envelopes, race-horses or expensive Sandbanks properties changed hands after that one either !!
Redknapp kept Portsmouth in the Premier League in the 2003-04 in English football season, but had a dispute with Portsmouth's owner Milan Mandarić over his assistant Jim Smith. Redknapp had another disagreement with Mandaric over the appointment of Arkan as Director of Football and after agreeing a hefty pay-off, resigned as Portsmouth's manager in November 2004.
Southampton[edit | edit source]
A few weeks after his departure at Portsmouth, Redknapp became manager of Southampton F.C., a move which infuriated Portsmouth's supporters as the two clubs are rivals. Redknapp was tasked with keeping Southampton in the Premier League but predictably, and through no fault of his own ("It was the players") he ultimately was unable to achieve this, ending Southampton's 27 year spell in the top flight. Redknapp remained in charge for the 2005-06 in English football, Football League Championship season but was unable to establish consistency needed to make Southampton promotion contenders. Redknapp was also unhappy with chairman Rupert Lowe's appointment of Sir Clive Woodward to the club's coaching staff. Despite Woodward's lack of knowledge of football management, his honesty rankled with Redknapp.[Citation not needed at all; thank you very much] After being repeatedly linked with a return to Portsmouth after they sacked Alain Perrin, Redknapp resigned as Southampton's manager in early December 2005. Lowe quoted Redknapp as referring to Portsmouth as his "spiritual home". What a mug ! Southampton have been servicing their huge debts ever since.
Return to Portsmouth[edit | edit source]
Redknapp returned to Portsmouth F.C. on 7 December 2005 with the club threatened by relegation to Football League Championship, although not in the relegation zone. At first it looked like Redknapp would be heading for a second successive relegation, but a fine run of form at the end of the season, aided by the takeover of Portsmouth by Alexandre Gaydamak (which provided Redknapp with more money), ensured Portsmouth's survival. In the following season, Redknapp led Portsmouth to a ninth placed finish which was the club's highest league finish since the 1950s. In October 2007, Redknapp signed a new contract at Portsmouth lasting until 2011.[1]
In January 2008 it emerged through the media that Redknapp was offered the vacant manager's job at Newcastle United following the sacking of Sam Allardyce. Redknapp had apparently declined the job, stating "I have a job to do to take this club forward and to walk away would not have been the right thing to do."[2] It was later stated by Newcastle chairman Christopher Mort that Redknapp "was interviewed for the job but he was only one of a number of people we were speaking to at that time", and at the time of Redknapp's interview the club had already been in secret talks with the eventual appointee, Kevin Keegan, for a week.[3]
On 8 March, he led Portsmouth to an FA Cup quarter final victory over Manchester United, completing a hat-trick of FA Cup wins over Manchester United, and followed this with a semi-final victory over West Bromwich Albion F.C.|at Wembley Stadium on 5 April. He guided the club to their first 2008 FA Cup Final in 69 years, where they beat Cardiff City F.C., on 17 May 2008, to win The FA Cup 1–0, thanks to a goal scored by Nwankwo Kanu.[4]. Since his departure, Portsmouth having been servicing their rather huge debts.
V-signs at Aston Villa[edit | edit source]
After being rather tamely taunted by the Holte End following his arrest for (ahem) alleged financial irregularities, in a game when the referee could hardly move for all the brown envelopes sticking out of his shorts, 'Arry (bless him) made a "V" sign at the home supporters. Oh dear. 14,000 fans then chanted "You're getting fucked in the showers", to which Redknapp described as "filth" and lied that "he never fackin swore like them Villa cunts like that, never!".
In 2008, when returning to Villa park, one admirer threw some money at Redknapp, who, after failing to catch it, decided to make an official complaint to the Football Association.
Tottenham Hotspur[edit | edit source]
Following the sacking of the fantastic Juande Ramos (who could not win a football match to save his life) by Tottenham Hotspur, the club announced that Redknapp had agreed to take over as the new manager at Spurs. And I thought Rupert Lowe was stupid, but there you go. Since then Redknapp has brought several hundreds of players to Tottenham, in a attempt to bring Champions League football to White Hart Lane and due to his policy of buy,buy,buy,buy,buy,sell,buy,buy,buy,regret selling,buy. He has gotten in to the 'top 4' with about every other club desperately failing. When in the Champions League, he has pulled off the resounding 0-4 loss to Real Madrid (the best result in Spurs's glorious history).
England?[edit | edit source]
Since the departure of Fabio Capello as manager of England, Redknapp has been voted by newspapers as the 'natural sucessor' for the job. A self declared illiterate but with a natural gift to relate to the English born players, Redknapp's 'Man of the People' approach is a contrast to Capello. It is related that when Capello asked his players to approach a game like a 'Machiavelli', Wayne Rooney asked which team this 'Scottish-Italian' played for. The story is probably untrue but it is one of those you wish it wasn't.
Redknapp is said to 'be thinkin' about the offer but won't decide as he needs to check with his dogs who are currently residing in tax exiled kennels in Monaco.
Corruption allegations and arrest[edit | edit source]
On 19 September 2006, Redknapp was quite rightly, shown on camera by BBC Panorama taking part in what appeared to be an interest in approaching a player illegally. Redknapp denied his conversation about then-Blackburn Rovers player Andy Todd (footballer born 1974)|with the soccer agent Peter Harrison amounted to "tapping up" or illegally approaching the player. Redknapp referred to Todd as a "tough bastard" during the conversation and suggested that he would be interested in signing the player on a full time basis if he was available. Redknapp told the BBC that he has never taken a bung and had given footballer Kevin Bond no reason to think otherwise and that he considers himself to be "One million percent innocent", clearly demonstrating that his financial acumen did not go hand-in-hand with his grasp of elementary mathematics. It is also widely known that Harry Redknapp cannot spell the words receipt and the.
In the final report of the [[2006 allegations of corruption in English football Stevens Inquiry published in June 2007, the only criticism of Redknapp concerned his ownership of a racehorse named "Double Fantasy" thought to have been given to him by the agent Willie McKay, which has aroused some suspicion. Redknapp told the inquiry that it was possible that he did own the horse but insisted that he had not made any money out of it because the horse was a failure and never won a race. Notably, Redknapp made his excuses and left the interview because he had to take delivery of a lorry full of brown envelopes.
In 2012 after a long running legal and trial for tax avoidance and Redknapp was declared innocent. His funnelling of money to secret bank accounts in Monaco was officially blamed to his pet dogs for opening up accounts without his knowledge. For the first time in nearly 20 years, the adjective 'Dodgy' was officially removed from Redknapp's name. This means he has every chance of becoming manager of England.
Managerial Style[edit | edit source]
This can be summed up by the following points:
- He hasn't got any (unless you call looking like a cross between Arthur Daley and Mike Bassett stylish.)
- Mind you, his post-match interview technique initially appeared very impressive, until its formulaic nature was catalogued by a 3 year-old girl as follows:
Hobbies[edit | edit source]
Harry likes horses and bought one in February 2011 because Alex Ferguson has one too. Harry also likes to make car noises like "vroom vroom" if he sees any cars in the street. He especially likes Police cars because they have shiny blue lights on their roofs but he is scared of their noisy sirens and has been known to cry if one goes off near him.
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Redknapp gets new Portsmouth deal. BBC. Retrieved on 2007-10-29.
- ↑ Redknapp rejects Newcastle offer. BBC. Retrieved on 2008-01-12.
- ↑ The Mag Fanzine Issue 224 - 23rd February 2008, Interview with Newcastle United chairman Chris Mort, p21
- ↑ McNulty, Phil (17 May 2008). Portsmouth 1-0 Cardiff. BBC Sport. Retrieved on 19 January 2009.


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The Devil is in the lack of details
While the title of this game may initially sound absurd, after playing the game for a few minutes, it begins to make some sense. The game is classic in the sense that its gameplay is loosely based on the classic title Breakout. The gameplay is also fast paced and reliant on destroying obstacles and enemies, so that takes care of the action part.
Devilish also makes sense since the game's "story" revolves around the horrors that Satan is causing a peaceful people. That being said, even though I can see where the name came from, it doesn't become any less ridiculous. By this same logic, Mario Bros. should have been named Questing Happy Jumping Plumbers. But as the old adage goes, this poorly named rose would play the same no matter its title.
As I alluded to earlier, Devilish's storyline is virtually nonexistent and completely uncompelling. It is delivered in a very uninspired fashion with still screens, fading text, and perhaps the lamest soap opera music to ever grace a video game. Through these segments, you learn that Satan and his minions have attacked a once peaceful kingdom, killing their queen. The king and princess are forced to flee and make plans to combat this evil. I'm still not entirely sure how this makes sense, but it somehow results in sixteen levels of bouncing around a destructive ball with a final confrontation with the devil himself.
Lame story and odd name aside, Devilish is a fairly interesting game. Instead of just being a gothic themed clone of Breakout, Devilish puts a unique spin on this classic action title. The ball in this game isn't limited to just destroying a number of blocks located at the top of the screen in order to advance. Devilish takes more of an action/adventure approach, having you navigate through dungeons until you find an exit portal. Along the way, you will combat numerous enemies, open treasure chests, destroy various obstacles, and even participate in some boss battles. These levels are like Legend of Zelda dungeons if Link put on some weight, turned into a ball, couldn't control his ability to stand still, and could break through barricades and damage enemies by rolling into them. This is a fairly valid comparison except there are really no puzzle elements involved in getting through any of Devilish's levels.
To navigate through these levels, you are given a ball and two paddles. The bottom paddle remains at the bottom of the touchscreen, while the upper paddle can be moved wherever you wish, including the top screen. While having action on the top and bottom screen seems like a good idea at first, the break between these screens becomes very disorienting. The upper paddle can also be tilted using the left and right shoulder buttons to adjust the angle that the ball will bounce. Unfortunately, the ball will frequently ignore the tilt of you paddle and react as if you hadn't bothered to move it from its flat position. While this is unfortunate, the ability to scout ahead with the upper paddle is a very welcome addition.
Throughout each level, you will have the opportunity to snag various power ups such as paddle stretchers, speed boosts, 1ups, and ball strengtheners. You will need to be careful about what you are picking up though because for virtually every power up the game offers, there is an equal and opposite negative power up. This keeps the gameplay both interesting and challenging at the same time. The boss battles are fairly simplistic, having you hit a specific piece of the boss until it is defeated. These battles, because of the bosses' sizes, are often the best examples of just how disorienting the split between the DS screens can be.
Devilish is not a pretty game by any stretch of the imagination. Most of the objects and enemies in the game are quite pixelated and blocky looking. It is also difficult to tell the difference between most of the enemies in the game. The sound effects and music in Devilish are also fairly below average. There seems to only be three sound effects for your ball making contact. One for hitting enemies, one for striking a metal object, and one for coming into contact with everything else. The in-game music is passable but quickly becomes repetitive while the "cinema" music, as I mentioned earlier, will give you flashbacks of an episode from last week on "Days of Our Lives."
Even with all of its faults, Devilish is still a unique and fun game. Unfortunately, the game will only take between one and three hours to play through. Since there is no multiplayer or alternate play modes besides trial (playing levels over again to beat high scores), there is a serious lack of play value. This game was truly different, but ultimately, poorly executed. With more options, play modes, and sizably larger amount of polish, I would be very interested in a sequel to this absurdly named game.

subset: commoncrawl


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What do rotten eggs and colon cancer have in common?
University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston researchers have discovered that hydrogen sulfide - the pungent-smelling gas produced by rotten eggs - is a key player in colon cancer metabolism, and a potential target for therapies for the disease.
In a paper appearing online this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the UTMB scientists describe cell-culture and mouse experiments demonstrating that colon cancer cells produce large amounts of hydrogen sulfide, and depend on the compound for survival and growth.
"They love it and they need it," said UTMB professor Csaba Szabo, an author on the paper. "Colon cancer cells thrive on this stuff - our data show that they use it to make energy, to divide, to grow and to invade the host."
The researchers connected the bulk of colon-cancer hydrogen sulfide production to a protein called CBS, which is produced at much higher levels in colon cancer cells than in non-cancerous tissue. Experiments revealed that colon cancer cell growth was curtailed when the activity of CBS was chemically blocked, while normal cell growth was unaffected.
"Our work identifies CBS as a new anti-cancer target," said UTMB professor and paper author Mark Hellmich. "By blocking CBS, we can fight colon cancer."
The anti-colon cancer effects of blocking CBS were also seen when the scientists studied "nude" mice onto which patient-derived colon cancer tumor cells had been implanted. Without hydrogen sulfide, the tumors grew much more slowly. They also showed a pronounced decrease in angiogenesis - the process by which a tumor stimulates the growth of a host's blood vessels around itself to "hijack" oxygen and nutrients for its own use.
The discovery surprised Szabo and Hellmich, but in retrospect, Szabo said, it makes sense. "Billions of years ago, before there was oxygen on Earth, hydrogen sulfide biochemistry was one of the main mechanisms that supported life," Szabo said. "By producing hydrogen sulfide, cancer cells are recreating an ancient mechanism."
That mechanism, Hellmich said, offers the scientists a chance to translate a basic science discovery into new therapies for cancer patients. "This is a chance to do research that really matters," Hellmich said. "We're very excited to have that opportunity."
Other authors of the PNAS paper include UTMB associate professor Celia Chao, postdoctoral fellows Ciro Coletta and Katalin Módis, assistant professor Bartosz Szczesny and adjunct professor Andreas Papapetropoulos. Support for this research was provided by the John Sealy Memorial Endowment Fund, the McLaughlin Foundation, the American Heart Association, the National Institutes of Health, the European Union and the Greek national fund.
Jim Kelly
University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston


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Creates a domain.
where check-clause is:
Embedded, Interactive, Module, ODBC, JDBC.
A domain is created with the properties specified in the statement. Domains may be used instead of explicit data type specifications to define column formats in the CREATE and ALTER TABLE statements.
If domain-name is specified in its unqualified form, the domain will be created in the schema which has the same name as the current ident.
If domain-name is specified in its fully qualified form (i.e. schema-name.domain-name) the domain will be created in the named schema (in this case, the current ident must be the creator of the specified schema).
Refer to Data Types in SQL Statements for a description of how the various data types are specified for the domain.
If default-value is specified, this value will be assigned to a column defined using the domain whenever a new table row is created or an existing table row is updated without an explicit value being specified for that column.
The COLLATE Clause
If the COLLATE clause is specified, the data controlled by the domain will be ordered and compared according to the collation specified.
For more information, see the Mimer SQL User's Manual, Collations.
The CHECK Clause
Specification of a CHECK clause means that only values for which the search condition does not evaluate to false may be assigned to a column defined using the domain.
The search condition, see Search Conditions, in the CHECK clause may only reference the domain (by using the keyword VALUE), literals, user-defined function invocations or the keyword NULL. The CHECK clause must not contain any non-deterministic expressions, e.g. CURRENT_DATE.
References to columns, subqueries, set functions or host variables are not allowed.
Specifying INITIALLY IMMEDIATE NOT DEFERRABLE explicitly states that the check constraint will be, by default, verified at the time the relevant data manipulation operation is performed rather than when the transaction is committed and that the verification may never be explicitly deferred until the time the transaction is committed. This is also the default behavior. (This is to allow for future extensions to the Mimer SQL syntax.)
Language Elements
default-value, see Default Values.
An ident must have USAGE privilege on the domain in order to use it.
The domain name may not be the same as the name of any other domain or used defined type belonging to the same schema.
The CREATE DOMAIN statement does not verify that any specified default value conforms to the restrictions of any specified CHECK clause. It is, therefore, possible to create a domain definition where attempts to store the default value in a column defined using the domain will fail.
CREATE DOMAIN domi AS INTEGER
CREATE DOMAIN name AS NCHAR VARYING(48) COLLATE english_1
Standard Compliance
Standard |
Compliance |
Comments |
Features outside core |
Feature F251, "Domain support". |


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Parental responsibility (PR) in family law is a legal status derived from the Children Act 1989. You may be quite rightly regarded as a 'responsible' parent by a host of organisations, even singly responsible for your child's daily care, but at the same time not have the formal status of a parent with parental responsibility. Generally this page will be concerned with a child's parents and their parental responsibility. However, others, besides parents, can have parental responsibility for a child; for example, a local authority for children in its care, a child's guardian, a child's stepfather and perhaps a child's grandparents or other relatives will be able acquire parental responsibility in certain circumstances.
In some instances explained elsewhere on this webpage, unless you have parental responsibility you will not be considered to be a 'parent' of the child since the definition of parent in some instances only includes parents with parental responsibility.
What is Parental Responsibility
Parental responsibility was a legal concept first defined in the Children Act 1989 (s3) as, "all the rights, duties, powers, responsibilities and authority which by law a parent of a child has in relation to the child and his property. " Detailed and explicit definition as to what this encompasses was deliberately avoided. Over the years a number of Court of Appeal judgments have given flesh to the bones of the bare definition provided in the statute. The 1989 Act emphasised parental responsibilities over parental rights but in many instances a parent must exercise his rights in order to perform his responsibilities. For example, in order to fulfill your parental responsibility to see that your child attends school and is educated properly a parent must be accorded certain rights with regard to the education system. Parental responsibility, unless discharged, runs until the child reaches the age of 18, though its importance and impact on the child will diminish as the child grows older and his own views and wishes carry more weight.
Parental responsibility also confers status on a parent. This status is important for:
(a) the father and the mother: unless both parents have parental responsibility the parent with care (PWC) (and the non-resident parent (NRP) themselves) may view the NRP as a 'second-class' parent, rather than as an equal parent. A NRP perceiving himself as a second class parent may be less inclined to involve themselves with their child, be more inclined to walk away; a PWC, regarding the NRP as a second-class parent may ignore the NRP and make all important decisions about the child without any reference to them.
There is no difference in law between the powers of mothers and fathers.
(b) the child: though in most instances the child will not be made aware of parental responsibility, in separated families the child needs to have a positive image of the parent he no longer lives with in order to bolster his own self-esteem. Lord Justice Ward's words from the 1995 judgment Re S (Parental Responsibility) are frequently quoted to emphasise this aspect.
(c) public authorities; all are more willing to fully engage with a parent who has formal parental responsibility and to treat him as an equal parent, than a parent who does not.
Do parents with parental responsibility need to share decision making?
s2(7) of the Children Act 1989 states:
Where more than one person has parental responsibility for a child, each of them may act alone and without the other (or others) in meeting that responsibility;
However case-law has established that in certain circumstances parents are under a legal duty to consult, meaning that where parents are separated, the resident parent is not always entitled to act without first consulting her ex-partner. Back in 1998 the Court of Appeal (Re H (Parental Responsibility) said that a father with parental responsibility would have to be consulted on "schooling, serious medical problems and other important occurrences in the child's life'.
Parental responsibility is not concerned with the day-to-day care of the child, does not permit either (separated) parent to interfere with how the other parent cares for the child when the child is in their care. In A v A (Shared Residence) [2004] EWHC 142 at paragraph 118 Mr Justice Wall remarked:
'It is a basic principle that, post separation, each parent with parental responsibility retains an equal and independent right and responsibility to be informed and make appropriate decisions about their children. However, where children are being looked after by one parent, that parent needs to be in a position to take the day-to-day decisions that have to be taken while that parent is caring for the children. Parents should not be seeking to interfere with one another in matters which are taking place while they do not have the care of their children. Subject to any questions which are regulated by court order, the object of the exercise should be to maintain flexible and practical arrangements whenever possible.'
The parents in the case above had, with the help of NYAS, agreed a 'Schedule of Items in Relation to their Exercise of Parental Responsibility', a schedule which Mr Justice Wall chose to endorse by appending it to the end of his judgment. The schedule differentiated between 3 sorts of decisions:
(a) Decisions that could be taken independently and without any consultation or notification to the other parent
(b) Decisions where one parent would always need to inform the other parent of the decision, but did not need to consult or take the other parent's views into account
(c) Decisions that you would need to both inform and consult the other parent
Though there is no absolute agreement, the rule of thumb is that the following matters require the consent of all those who have parental responsibility for the child:
Change of surname (even where there is no residence order)
Removing the child from the jurisdiction (i.e. England and Wales) for more than one month
Committing to a serious and irreversible operation (except in an emergency)
Change of school
Who automatically has parental responsibility for a child?
Many parents will have parental responsibility without being aware that they do.
All mothers, whether married or unmarried, automatically have parental responsibility for any child born to them. [Children Act 1989 s2(1) & s2(2)(a)]
Fathers who were married to the mother of the child when the child was born also automatically have parental responsibility. [CA 1989 s2(1)]
How can an 'unmarried father' obtain parental responsibility?
Unmarried Fathers can acquire parental responsibility in any of the following ways:
- By jointly registering the child's birth with the mother (for births registered after 1 December 2003) you will automatically gain parental responsibility (i.e. there will be no separate official document stating that you have PR) [CA 1989 s4(1)(a)]. It is the date of registration, not the date of birth which is important in determining whether the father has parental responsibility.
- By re-registering the birth for pre December 2003 registrations, to add the father's details, you will automatically gain parental responsibility [CA 1989 s4(1)(a)].
You would either need the mother to attend with you or provide a formal declaration of agreement that your name is to be added to the birth record.
NB: the birth can only be re-registered if the father's name was omitted from the original registration. If it is already there, you cannot re-register, and therefore you cannot gain parental responsibility by this means. - By subsequently marrying the mother of the child you automatically gain PR [CA 1989 s2(3)Family Law Reform Act 1987 s(1)]
- By obtaining a residence order from the court (PR is a 'by-product' of the residence order) you will automatically acquire parental responsibility [CA 1989 s12(1)], although in this form PR will terminate when the resident order ends (usually age 16).
- A birth parent can sign a parental responsibility agreement on form C(PRA1) according to the Children Act 1989. This document itself will signify that you have parental responsibility for the child) [CA 1989 s4(1)(2)].
- A step-parent's PR agreement can ne made by consent with all those already having PR for the child on form C(PRA2) according to the Children & Adoption Act 2002.
- By obtaining a parental responsibility order from the court. The order will specifically state that the court has granted you parental responsibility. [CA 1989 s4(1)(3)]
- By obtaining an adoption order from the court.
Only with 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8 will you obtain a document that explicitly states that the father has parental responsibility for the child. With the other means of obtaining parental responsibility there will be no separate documentation confirming parental responsibility, the documentation of the status acquired (marriage, child's birth certificate, etc.) being themselves evidence of parental responsibility.
Can the mother's new partner have parental responsibility for my child?
The mother's new husband can acquire parental responsibility by either (a) a parental responsibility agreement (b) by the court making a parental responsibility order following the step-father's application or (c) by having a residence order made in his favour (a joint residence order with the mother would be the norm). The mother's new boyfriend/partner cannot have parental responsibility for your child – only her husband (or girlfriend, if she is in a formally recognised civil partnership).
Should the birth father himself not have parental responsibility, the mother (all mothers have parental responsibility) can, without the birth father's agreement, enter into a parental responsibility agreement with her new husband [CA1989 s4A(1)(a)]. If you, the birth father have parental responsibility your agreement is required. You will not lose your parental responsibility should you enter into a parental responsibility agreement or the court makes an order giving the step-father parental responsibility.
Some birth fathers strongly resent another man having parental responsibility for his child whilst others recognise that if their child spends a great deal of time with the step-father, particularly if the step-father cares for the child alone, then it makes sense for that adult to have parental responsibility. Of course, we would expect the birth father to have parental responsibility too.
Allowing a step-parent to acquire parental responsibility was brought in by the Children and Adoption Act 2002 in order to address the circumstances in which step-fathers would apply to adopt the child in order to acquire parental responsibility. Prior to the Act around a quarter of all adoptions concerned step-parents. An 'unmarried' step-father, though he cannot acquire parental responsibility by way of a parental responsibility agreement or order can, if in an 'enduring' relationship with the mother, still adopt the child.
How can a parental responsibility agreement be made?
Whist unmarried couples are co-operating harmoniously over the parenting of their child the fact that the father doesn't have parental responsibility is not likely to be an issue. It is only when disputes arise that it becomes so, and this, of course, is the time least likely for the mother to be persuaded to agree for the father to have equal parental responsibility. The father is in a position of having to 'sell' the idea to the mother and to convince her that by making this agreement for the benefit of their child she is not going to disadvantage herself. It is almost inevitable that she may regard it as giving away some of her absolute control. Also, the fact that the agreement cannot be made without both parents attending the court office is often itself reason enough for a mother to decline. Inertia on her part, not even opposition, could be the limiting factor.
Floating the idea to the mother without alarming her can be a delicate task and this sample letter (PDF or Word download) may just provide a beginning to which you may add some persuasive arguments of your own.
A parental responsibility agreement has to be made on a specified form and filed with the Principal Registry.
The notes accompanying the PRA Form give full instructions as to how to go about this. Currently, there is no charge for making such an agreement. The following points should be noted:
* Only the biological parents can make a Parental Responsibility Agreement
* Step-parents must apply on C(PRA2).
* The child must be resident in England or Wales.
* A separate form must be filled in for each child.
* All parents with PR and giving consent, and the prospective parents must attend with documentary evidence of their identity.
How can an application be made for a parental responsibility order?
Less than 2% of the 11,000 applications for parental responsibility in 2006 were refused. The number of applications for parental responsibility is falling, following the new regulations which came into force in December 2003 which gave automatic parental responsibility to those fathers who jointly sign the birth certificate.
Generally, fathers who apply for a parental responsibility order choose to do so in tandem with an application for contact. They may have come to terms with not having parental responsibility and would not choose to go to court on this sole issue and stand the chance of antagonising the mother. But when problems over contact arise, since both applications can be incorporated on the same form for a single fee, they will apply for a contact order and a parental responsibility order together.
Combining applications for both orders (PR and contact) is more efficient and simple, but often the fairly straightforward decision about, and almost inevitable award of, parental responsibility, gets delayed until the contact issue is resolved. A stand-alone application for parental responsibility could be disposed of very quickly. Furthermore, since in many instances a mother's opposition to the father's application for parental responsibility would have no real merit or chance of success she should not benefit from legal aid funding and in many instances would be required to act in person or pay for legal representation. This factor alone could result in her not opposing the application or even, perhaps under pressure from the court, opting to make a parental responsibility agreement.
However, when the father is applying for both contact and parental responsibility, the mother, with the help of her (often publicly funded) solicitor can choose to argue against the granting of parental responsibility, just to be difficult, knowing that parental responsibility is almost certain to be awarded. S1(2) Children Act 1989 does require the court to dispose of te PR element of the application "without undue delay".
Section 4 of the Children Act does not stipulate the criteria which a father must meet in order to be given parental responsibility but just before the Children Act came into force in 1991 the Court of Appeal decision in Re H (Illegitimate Children: Parental Rights) dealt with this matter and since then the following factors have remained central to any decision:
a) That the status of the birth father is not in dispute.
b) The degree of commitment which the father has shown towards the child (this can be illustrated by financial support, pursuing contact and keeping arrangements, present at birth, having one's name on the birth certificate, involvement in child's education etc).
c) The degree of attachment existing between the father and the child (naturally a father of a very young child may have had less opportunity to develop this).
d) The reasons for the father's application (to weed out applications made solely to be obstructive or disruptive since the overwhelming number of applications will be made for genuine motives).
e) Any other relevant factors.
How can parental responsibility be obtained by a residence order?
The parental responsibility order goes hand in hand with the residence order, so if the residence order is discharged (as they sometimes are, especially with shared residence orders) then the parental responsibility order will also be terminated. You would have notice of any application to have the residence order discharged or varied to one of sole residence to the mother, and therefore would have an opportunity to apply for a parental responsibility order – though a separate application would surely be unnecessary in the proceedings. In any event, under Family Proceeding Rule 4.4 and FPCR 4 an application can be made by way of statement.
Simply mentioning the ramifications of removing residence from you as regards your parental responsibility would be sufficient for the court to address this by making a parental responsibility order.
I don't have parental responsibility - does it matter?
Guardians and death of a parent (CA1989 s5)
Should the mother die and has appointed a guardian (generally in a will) the guardian will automatically acquire parental responsibility if the father doesn't have parental responsibility (and if the mother has a sole residence order the appointment of her guardian will stand, whether or not the father has parental responsibility).
A father with parental responsibility can appoint someone to be the child's guardian upon his death but this will not have any effect if the mother outlives him (unless the father has a residence order for the child) since the mother will have parental responsibility.
Being the child's guardian (in many instances the mother's relative, the maternal grandmother or aunt will be nominated by the mother as the guardian) and acquiring parental responsibility for the child doesn't automatically mean that the child will live with and be brought up by the guardian. However, this is likely to be the default position and likely to provide the status quo which the father may then have to attempt to reverse by making an application for residence.
These matters will take on more significance if the guardian lives far away and the child's move to the guardian's locality will diminish or even terminate the child's previously established contact with his father.
Removing the child from the jurisdiction
A father without PR has no status internationally should the mother decide to 'up sticks' and simply go and live anywhere else in the world (unless there is a residence order in force (CA s13). In many instances a father will tend to know whether this is a possibility – perhaps in instances where the mother is originally from another country and still has close family living there; or when she has began a serious relationship with a man from a different part of the world. With forewarning, a father, even one without parental responsibility, could obtain a prohibited steps order that specifically prevented the mother from removing the child from England and Wales. Frequently, however, a mother may take the child on 'holiday' but have no intention of returning.
If the father has parental responsibility then the mother would either have to obtain his permission for permanent removal or apply to the court for leave to remove the child. If she retained the child abroad to live in another country she will be viewed as having unlawfully abducted the child and steps can be taken to have the child returned to the jurisdiction.
Technically, under the Child Abduction Act 1984, removal from the jurisdiction, even for a short holiday, requires the consent of everyone with parental responsibility for the child – or leave of the court. In practice, mothers who don't have the right to take the child for "less than one month" bestowed upon them by a residence order [CA1989 s13(2)], routinely take their children abroad on holiday without a second thought about obtaining the father's permission – and their lawyers routinely fail to remind them that the father's permission is required.
Adding the father's name to the birth certificate
If the father's name is not on the birth certificate and he has parental responsibility then he can, even without the mother's consent, have the child's birth re-registered to include his name. Most fathers and their children think it is important to have the father's name on the birth certificate but a significant number of mothers may not. There is no charge for this but, as with copies of all birth certificates, certificates containing the newly added information have to be paid for. Further information on how to go about this can be found on the government's General Record Office website.
Accessing information about your child
Education - In practice, it is necessary to have parental responsibility to be fully involved in your child's schooling. See this link for further details.
Health - The prevailing view is that parental responsibility is required for a father to be allowed to be given access to his child's medical information. The General Medical Council's Guidance for Doctors in relation to children (0-18 years) when referring to sharing information with 'parents' specifically defines these as being parents with parental responsibility. If you don't have parental responsibility, as far as the GMC is concerned, you are not a parent. For further information refer to the Doctors page of this website.
Placing your child for adoption
The Adoption and Children Act 2002 s52 (6) defines a 'parent' as a parent with parental responsibility, requiring the agreement of all such parents to be obtained (or their permission to be dispensed with by the court) before a child is placed for adoption. A father without parental responsibility has no absolute right to be involved in the proposed adoption of his child.
You may consider the likelihood of adoption not to be anywhere on the horizon; but people's circumstances change, mothers do re-partner to abusive men, do get involved in substance abuse, do have their children taken into care by social services. Your child could be involved in such a situation.
What do you think?
Send us feedback!


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War Don Don
In the heart of Freetown, the capital of Sierra Leone, United Nations soldiers guard a heavily fortified building known as the "special court." Inside, Issa Sesay awaits his trial. Prosecutors say Sesay is a war criminal, guilty of heinous crimes against humanity. His defenders say he is a reluctant fighter who protected civilians and played a crucial role in bringing peace to Sierra Leone. With unprecedented access to prosecutors, defense attorneys, victims, and, from behind bars, Sesay himself, WAR DON DON puts international justice on trial for the world to see — finding that in some cases the past is not just painful, it is also opaque.
Issa Hassan Sesay, Wayne Jordash, Sareta Ashraph
Rebecca Richman Cohen


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The National Cattlemen's Beef Association (NCBA) commends the announcement by the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), that it has completed its efforts to modernize import regulations for bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE). This final import regulation is based on internationally-accepted scientific literature and the standards set by the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).
"The basis of these import regulations, set on internationally-accepted science and the OIE guidelines, is critical in showing that the U.S. is committed to ensuring trade, unfettered by protectionist motivations, and sends a clear message to our trading partners of the value we place on fair trade," said Scott George, NCBA president and Cody, Wyo. cattleman. "I am pleased that NCBA has been a leader on this issue since 2003 and that the USDA/APHIS incorporated the comments of cattle producers in finalizing these regulations. These regulations show that cattlemen and women not only talk about market access, but that we stand behind it."
This regulation, also known as the comprehensive BSE rule, brings the U.S. into compliance with international trade standards without compromising the interlocking safeguards against BSE that are currently in place.
"This is great news for the U.S. cattle industry and integral to our efforts to further international trade," George said. "With these import regulations set, I am confident we will be able to expand our market access and meet international demand for high quality U.S. beef. We greatly appreciate the work of USDA Secretary Vilsack and the entire team at USDA/APHIS."
The comprehensive BSE rule will solidify the United States' commitment to basing our trade relationships on internationally-recognized, science-based standards. When this rule is in effect, the U.S. will use the same criteria and categories as the OIE to identify a country's BSE risk status. This rule will be published in the Federal Register and will become effective 90 days after publication.


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Team Foremost Pegram to Compete in 2009 American Superbike Championship Motorcycle Racing Series.
Ducati North America is proud to announce the brand's return to Superbike racing as Team Foremost Pegram will contest the 2009 AMA Pro Racing American Superbike Championship on a Ducati 1098 R Motorcycle.
Team Foremost Pegram will be a single rider squad competing with accomplished racer Larry Pegram. The 1098 R is Ducati's flagship Superbike, and a derivative of the 2008 World Superbike Champion Ducati F08. The season kicks off at Daytona International Speedway on March 5th; where the latest generation of Ducati Superbike will take to the famous banking for the first time.
"The Ducati Brand is synonymous with Superbike racing and we are thrilled to once again be fielding a team in the United States- the largest sportbike market in the world. The current environment for raising sponsorship funds is difficult and we are pleased that Foremost Insurance's increased sponsorship has made fielding this year's team possible," said Michael Lock, CEO of Ducati North America.
Title sponsor Foremost Insurance supported Team Pegram in the 2008 AMA Formula Xtreme Championship with the Ducati 848 Superbike. This year's move to the premier racing class is a natural fit for both Ducati and Foremost.
"I am excited to be on a Ducati Superbike for the 2009 season," said Pegram. "Foremost has stepped up their sponsorship and we are off to a great start. After the test in Fontana I can say this is the best bike I've ever ridden. I'm really looking forward to a great race in Daytona."
Opening ceremonies for the American Superbike race in Daytona will take place Thursday, March 5th at 3:00pm. Look for Pegram on Ducati Island, just outside the Daytona Motor Speedway, on March 6th at 1:00pm for an autograph session.
"This year we will utilize the team for programs off the race track as well as in competition, and our racing efforts are solely focused on the Superbike Team. Therefore, we reallocated resources from other programs including our local contingency program. which is suspended for 2009." commented Jim Viola, Ducati Marketing Director.
For more information about Ducati North America or Team Foremost Pegram racing, please visit www.ducatiusa.com and www.pegramracing.com.


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When it comes to home maintenance, there are projects you can easily do yourself, things you can recruit friends for and projects a professional should handle. But what home maintenance jobs need done regularly and when should you do them?
We're here to help. We've rounded up some of our best home maintenance advice, starting with a national survey of homeowners and what they do (or don't do) when it comes to taking care of one of their most important investments.
- Fix it or risk It?: Our national survey reveals poor homeowner maintenance habits—from lack of roof check-ups and furnace inspections to never-been-done chimney cleanings that leave millions of people at risk of major financial loss.
- DIY or Hire a Pro?: Learn which questions you should ask yourself before going it alone.
- Tips for Hiring a Contractor: Thinking about undertaking a home improvement project? If so, consult our checklist to ensure you get the right person for the job.
- 10 Overlooked Home Projects: Homes require a lot of work, and some projects might not be on your radar. Learn how to tackle the most overlooked home projects.
- 6 Reasons Why Water Heaters Fail: Your water heater is one of the household appliances you rely on the most. Learn why it might fail—and how you can help prevent that from happening.
- 5 Sneaky Sources of Water Leaks: We all know that faulty pipes, roofs and toilets cause water leaks. But do you know any of the other common causes of water leaks?
- 6 Ways to Prevent Home Water Damage: Learn six ways you can prevent home water damage from leaving you and your wallet soaked.
- How to Prevent a Dryer Fire: Dryer fires happen. We've got nine tips to help you prevent one in your home.
- Tips for Safe and Effective Home Heating: Checking your furnace can lower operating costs, protect your family against hazards and prevent your furnace from quitting at an inopportune time.


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Customize Starting Age and Frequency of Mammograms
Mammograms should not be done on a one-size fits all basis, but instead should be personalized based on a woman's age, the density of her breasts, her family history of breast cancer and other factors including her own values. That's the conclusion of a new study in the July 5 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
The study challenges current guidelines from groups such as the American Cancer Society and the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force that make recommendations based on age alone. The American Cancer Society recommends annual screening starting at age 40 with no upper age limit, while the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommends biennial screening for women between the ages of 50 and 74.
While mammography screening indisputably decreases deaths from breast cancer, there is disagreement as to when women should begin mammography and how often they should get it: every two years starting at 50 or every year starting at 40?
"Our analysis suggests that women with a first-degree relative with breast cancer or with a history of a breast biopsy should have an initial screening mammography at age 40," said study co-author Karla Kerlikowske, MD, MS, an expert in mammography at the University of California, San Francisco.
"For women age 40 to 49 with high breast density, and with either a first-degree relative with breast cancer or a prior breast biopsy, the benefits versus harm for performing mammography every two years is similar to screening an average-risk woman in her 50s. This amounts to about 20 percent of women in their 40s. For women age 40 to 49 without these risk factors, it is reasonable to wait until age 50 to start mammography screening."
Media Coverage Highlights:
Many studies have shown that the denser a woman's breast on a mammogram, the greater her risk of breast cancer. Low density or fatty breasts means a low risk of breast cancer while high density or less fatty breasts means a higher risk.
The researchers used population-based data collected on U.S. women from the Breast Cancer Surveillance Consortium (http://breastscreening.cancer.gov) and Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results (http://www.seer.cancer.gov/statfacts/html/breast.html) of the National Cancer Institute.
They developed a model to compare the lifetime costs and health benefits for women who underwent mammograms every year, every two years, every three to four years, or who never got a mammogram. The women all had different risk factors for breast cancer, and the model assumed that they all started out as healthy but could ultimately fall into one of six different categories: remain healthy or develop ductal carcinoma in situ (DCIS), localized invasive breast cancer, regional invasive breast cancer or distant invasive breast cancer, or die from invasive breast cancer or other causes.
The authors used the data to estimate how many extra mammograms would be needed over a decade to prevent one death from breast cancer in those having mammograms once every three to four years compared to no mammograms, and in those having mammography every two years compared to once every three to four years. They also estimated the costs for each frequency of mammography for each year of quality life gained.
"Most guidelines use age as the determining factor in when, and how often, a woman should get a mammogram," said Steve Cummings, MD, of the San Francisco Coordinating Center at the California Pacific Medical Center Research Institute, and the senior author of the study.
"What our study shows is that other factors, particularly breast density, are just as important, if not more so, in helping a woman decide what is most appropriate for her. We show that mammography should be personalized. The best interval for you depends on your age, breast density, and other risk factors for breast cancer."
Lead author John Schousboe, MD, PhD of the Park Nicollet Institute and the University of Minnesota noted that yearly mammograms was not cost-effective and yielded little additional health benefits compared to mammograms once every two years, regardless of age, breast density or other risk factors.
The frequency of mammography, he said, is not just a clinical decision, it also has a strong emotional component.
"Feelings matter too," Schousboe said. "For example, some mammograms produce a false positive result and these can cause a lot of worry for a woman. The effect of mammograms on a woman's quality of life should be considered in her decision about when to be screened. If mammograms reassure you, then more often than every two years may be reasonable. If they worry or bother you, then less frequent may be OK."
The study was supported by grants from Eli Lilly and Co. and the Da Costa Family Foundation for Research in Breast Cancer Prevention at CPMC. The sponsors had no role in the design, data collection, analysis or interpretation of the study.
"This is exactly the type of analysis that we need if we are going to help women and doctors figure out the best schedule of screening for them," said Susan Love, MD, MBA, president of the Dr. Susan Love Research Foundation. "Personalized medicine extends beyond treatment to risk definition and appropriate screening schedules."
UCSF is a leading university dedicated to promoting health worldwide through advanced biomedical research, graduate-level education in the life sciences and health professions, and excellence in patient care.


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Matt Flynn traded to the Raiders for draft picks
By Clare Farnsworth
SEATTLE --The Seahawks have finalized a trade that sends Matt Flynn to the Raiders for a pair of draft choices, it was announced Monday morning.
In exchange of the sixth-year quarterback, the Seahawks will receive a fifth-round pick in the 2014 NFL Draft and a conditional pick in the 2015 draft. Flynn was signed in free agency last year, but threw only nine passes in the regular season after rookie Russell Wilson won the starting job with strong efforts in training camp and impressive performances during the preseason.
Word of the possible trade surfaced on Friday, but no deal was reached over the weekend as the Raiders were exploring trade options for veteran starter Carson Palmer, who could end up with the Cardinals.
Trading Flynn, who started two games in his first four NFL seasons as Aaron Rodgers' backup with the Packers, leaves the Seahawks with Wilson as the only quarterback on their roster.


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This article is more than 1 year old
US drones to pack crowd controlling strobe beam
Flying robots impose peace and tranquility
The US military has taken another step forward with its research into "non-lethal crowd control systems" after reaching back into the disco era for inspiration.
The US Army is looking to deploy a powerful strobe searchlight mounted in a pilotless drone aircraft. The strobe is intended to cause "immobilisation to all those within the beam".
Earlier this year the US Marines tested a vehicle-mounted directed microwave cooker which is intended to lightly grill the outer skin layer of troublemakers, causing an "intense burning sensation" which is nonetheless harmless – or anyway, less harmful than other things which the US Marines might do.
So-called "photic stimulation" with strobe lights, which the US Army is playing with, can cause epileptic fits in some people, which could be the effect that the US forces would like to achieve.
However, the technique has also been used to treat pre-menstrual tension and to mitigate migraines, suggesting that the new aerial riot robots could produce some startling, even pleasurable side-effects – perhaps merely pacifying the crowd rather than leaving it jittering in the dirt.
It is also possible to speculate that angry anti-US mobs who have had the foresight to equip themselves with some form of reflective eyewear might be able to avoid some or all of the effects.
The contract to develop the technology has been awarded to Peak Systems, and the program includes medical research as required into how to achieve the required effects. ®


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OCEAN CITY – An Ocean City man is in custody this week facing a slew of charges including indecent exposure and assaulting a police officers after an incident last Saturday that began with a domestic dispute, included exposing himself to a group of juveniles and ended with him spitting on an OCPD officer and grabbing him by his genitals.
Around 8 p.m. last Saturday, an OCPD officer responded to the area of 122nd Street for a reported indecent exposure. Upon arrival, the officer met with a man later identified as Christopher Lee Fraites, 38, of Ocean City as he crossed Coastal Highway at 122nd Street. Fraites told police he had confronted a group of kids nearby when they harassed his girlfriend while she waited on a bus stop nearby.
Police then met with a group of juveniles, who told police Fraites was naked and had placed his genitals on the balcony railing and began jumping up and down as he yelled at them. The group of teenagers told police Fraites then went back inside, got dressed and came back out and started throwing glass beer bottles at them from his balcony.
At that point, the juveniles called 911. The girlfriend told police she and Fraites had done nothing wrong and blamed the incident on the juveniles. Fraites was then arrested for indecent exposure and littering for throwing the beer bottles in the street. While Fraites was being taken into custody, he allegedly said to the arresting officer, "do you want me to spit on you?" and then spit in the officer's face. When the officer attempted to put a seatbelt on the suspect, Fraites allegedly grabbed the officer's genitals and twisted them, according to police reports.
Fraites was then transferred to a cage car by another officer, and what happened next is unclear, but emergency services was called to the booking facility to treat Fraites injuries including a laceration on his head. He was later taken to AGH for further treatment.
Fraites was charged with second-degree assault, a fourth-degree sex offense, indecent exposure, disorderly conduct and littering. Last Saturday's incident was not Fraites first run-in with police resulting in charges of assaulting an officer.
In 2001, Fraites was arrested during a fight in a West Ocean City bar, and while Maryland State Police troopers were transporting him to the Berlin barrack for processing, he head-butted one trooper while he was driving, causing him to swerve, kicked and swung at another trooper and yelled racial epithets at another. He was sentenced to a year in jail.


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Image highlight not on right image
After opening and closing an image from a comment while viewing an image in the gallery (the type that pops up in the shadow-box), the yellow highlighting box on the image selector (top-right 3x2 thumbnail block) does not update to the current image. This is most noticeable when on the last image in a set of six because when I go to the next image, the image selector is still on the old set of six and not on the new set of six.
I am using the latest stable release of Google Chrome. I did not test this on any other browser.
Thank you for your work on this site, it really is a beautifully designed and well-functioning piece of work.
I was in the gallery today, and realized I forgot to mention that it only does this when changing the pictures with the arrow keys.
Customer support service by UserEcho


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Gloria Bell
Gloria Bell brings over 30 years of successful business operations, communications, event management, and entrepreneurial experience, to her roles as Co-Founder and Operations Director of The Women In Tech Summit and as an advisor to TechGirlz.
In addition to these roles, Gloria provides social media consulting services to businesses and non-profits. She is a frequent speaker on a multitude of social media and women in technology topics and is a guest lecturer and Adjunct Professor of Social Media Strategy at Drexel University.
Gloria is known as a strong advocate for women in technology, a passionate social media practitioner, entrepreneur, and volunteer. Demonstrating her commitment to the social media and entrepreneurial community, Gloria has served on the Chapter Board of Social Media Club Philadelphia and on the Philly StartUp Leaders Leadership Team as the Events Director. She has also served as a mentor for Lean Startup Machine and Startup Weekend, and as organizer of PodCamp Philly, PodCamp East and Content Camp.
When she is not working to build and grow the community of women in technology, learning more about writing code, studying the latest technology in the social media marketing space, or tweeting away as @gloriabell, she is behind the lens of her camera, in the kitchen baking, digging in her garden, or spending time with her sons or friends.
Contact Details
Affiliation | Co-founder and Operations Director of The Women in Tech Summit and as an advisor to TechGirlz |
Location | Philadelpha, PA |
@gloriabell |


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Does Heaven Destroy Liberty?
As long as I am lingering over the value of Jonathan Edwards' essay on the Divine Decrees, here is one more quote that is worthy of extended biblical reflection. It comes from Section 19.
Objectors may say, God cannot always prevent men's sins, unless he act contrary to the free nature of the subject, or without destroying men's liberty. But will they deny, that an omnipotent and infinitely wise God could not possibly invent, and set before men, such strong motives to obedience, and have kept them before them in such a manner, as should have influenced all mankind to continue in their obedience, as the elect angels have done, without destroying their liberty? God will order it so, that the saints and angels in heaven never will sin: and does it therefore follow, that their liberty is destroyed, and that they are not free, but forced in their actions? Does it follow, that they are turned into blocks, as the Arminians say the Calvinist doctrine turn men?


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From the Hans Christian Andersen biography "The Life of Hans Christian Andersen. Day By Day", written by DPhil Johan de Mylius:
Visiting Dickens8 May
HCA attends a dinner party given by the politician C.C. Hall. Amongst the guests is Grundtvig, a Danish priest, poet, writer and historian. As instigator of the movement for enlightenment by the people, which led to establishment of the Danish folk high-schools, Grundtvig is a significant figure in Danish history.
17th - 20th May
Visits the queen dowager at Sorgenfri Castle, where he reads aloud from his new novel. The queen is moved to tears by the ending.
20 May
Release of At være eller ikke at være (To Be or Not To Be). The novel is released in English and German at the same time. It is a 'Bildungsroman' (novel depicting personal development) and a religious novel of debate, dealing with the intensifying materialism (the philosophical materialism) of the day. The novel also relates the crisis concerning the philosophy of life to the national crisis (the three year war).
1857: Visiting Dickens
30 May
Departure from Copenhagen for the purpose of visiting Dickens, who has invited him to stay. 1 day at Sorø Academy, 3 at Basnæs Estate, then via Korsør to Kiel. From there to Altona, Harburg, Uelzen, Hannover, Hamn, Cologne, Aachen, Brussels, Calais and Dover, arriving on 11th in London. Goes immediately to Dicken's country home, Gads Hill at Higham.
11th June - 15 July
Staying with Dickens, partly at Gad's Hill, partly at Tavistock House in London. Hears Händel's Messias at Chrystal Palace. Spends quite some time with the publisher Bentley and his family, occasionally staying a day or two with them at St. John's Wood. Is very aware that his lengthy stay is not appreciated by the other members of Dicken's family, especially the children. Learns, by and by, to speak and read a certain amount of English .


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Part of the Series
Moyers and Company
Richard Hasen's new book The Voting Wars chronicles the partisan battles over election rules from the 2000 Florida recount to the present. The story continues on his Election Law Blog, the go-to source for updates on the wave of new voter ID laws, registration roll purges, and other efforts to manipulate voter turnout and potentially skew elections. We caught up with Hasen to talk about election fraud, voter suppression and the chances that either could make the difference in a close election this November.
Lauren Feeney: What's been the legacy of the Florida recount of 2000 (aside from the eight-year presidency of George W. Bush, of course)?
Rick Hasen: People learned the wrong lesson in Florida. They learned how election rules could be manipulated for partisan advantage; that you could try to game the refs in terms of what rules are in effect and how the votes are counted; that going to court is sometimes a successful strategy for changing the rules for counting the vote after the election. They learned, essentially, that election law can be used as a political strategy.
The good news is that we've made tremendous improvements in the technology we use for casting and counting ballots. There are now millions more votes that will be counted instead of being lost by bad technology. Unfortunately, that's the only good news; the rest of the news is bad.
Feeney: What is the most common type of election-related fraud?
Hasen: We see many more cases of fraud related to election officials or absentee balloting than impersonation fraud. For my book The Voting Wars, I could not find a single case in the last generation where it's even remotely possible that impersonation fraud without the collusion of election officials was responsible for changing an election.
We see many more cases of fraud related to election officials or absentee balloting than impersonation fraud.Election officials are often political appointments, or they're elected on partisan grounds. We are alone among mature democracies in having such a partisan, hyper-localized system for running our elections, as opposed to a non-partisan national agency in which the people who run elections have their allegiance to the integrity of the process and not to a particular political party. Our elections are still run by partisans and they're still done mostly on the local level, where there are varying degrees of competence and resources. We've gotten more partisan as a country in the last decade, and that has spilled over into fights over how we run our elections.
Feeney: Who are the main forces behind some of these new laws, purges and restrictions that are part of this effort to use election law as a strategy?
Hasen: Most of the new laws have passed on party lines. So if you look at the new voter identification laws, with the exception of Rhode Island, they've passed on almost straight party-line votes, with Republicans supporting such laws and Democrats opposing them. The controversial pro-business group ALEC has been responsible for putting voter ID on the agenda in a lot of these states.
The Bush administration really pushed the claim that there was a lot of voter fraud, and The New York Times had an excellent article summing up the results. There were very few cases of voters actually committing fraud; more cases of election officials committing fraud, and not a single case of impersonation fraud.
In the meantime, a close ally of Karl Rove named Thor Hearne started a group called the American Center for Voting Rights, which set itself up as a kind of think tank trying to show that voter fraud was a major problem in this country. It produced no original research, and much of the research it put out was debunked. But Hearne testified at all of these hearings about the prevalence of voter fraud and used it to argue in favor of voter identification laws and other laws which seemed to be intended to at least modestly suppress Democratic turnout. One day, the center simply disappeared, its website disappeared, Hearne has scrubbed his affiliation with this group from his resume; it's as if the group never existed. There are some people — I call them the 'fraudulent fraud squad' — who raise allegations of serious impersonation fraud, but when you push them on it or you check out the details, it almost always turns out that they were talking about a debunked claim, an exaggerated claim, or a claim about a kind of fraud that has nothing to do with voter identification.
Feeney: Can you compare the number of legitimate voters who stand to be disenfranchised by some of these new rules like voter ID to the number of fraudulent voters who might stand to be blocked by these efforts?
Hasen: Overall, election fraud is a relatively small problem, but when it does occur, it tends to occur in one of two ways: either through corrupt election officials who change vote totals or do other things to affect election outcomes, or through absentee ballots, which can be bought and sold. Every year we see prosecutions and convictions for absentee ballot fraud, some of which has actually changed the results of elections.
The principal kind of fraud which a voter identification law would prevent is voter impersonation fraud; that is, one person going to the polls and claiming to be somebody else on the rolls. This kind of fraud is extremely rare. A recent News 21 study looked at all election-related prosecutions over the last decade in all 50 states, and found at most 10 cases of prosecutions, compared to hundreds of cases of absentee fraud and election official fraud.
It's no surprise that the numbers are so low, because voter impersonation fraud is an exceedingly dumb way to try to steal an election. It's just not done, because you'd have to have enough people going into the polling place pretending to be someone else, knowing those people who they're pretending to be are not also going to vote, and not being able to verify how these fraudulent voters are going to actually cast their ballots.
On the other side of the ledger, how many people could be disenfranchised by these laws? We don't have very good figures on this, but Democrats tend to exaggerate the numbers. You'll hear that millions of voters are being disenfranchised. I don't believe that this is a fight over millions of voters; I think it's a fight at the margins. Perhaps we're talking about 1 percent, perhaps a little more. But in a very close election, with these voters skewing Democratic, removing 1 or 2 percent of Democratic voters from the rolls could be enough to make the difference between a Democratic victory and a Republican victory.
Learn more about election law at Hasen's Election Law Blog or follow him on Twitter @rickhasen.


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Our agenda on this page is to "brain storm" ideas to improve our individual and collective situations, and to further our cause. There are three specific fronts that this think tank will focusing on, in no particular order:
First:We are looking for ideas to help us meet our basic needs and increase our individual resources; things that we can do to help us pay the rent, buy groceries, and pay our utility bills. If we are going to have any effect, we will need to be in an environment were we are not too cold and hungry, so that we might better use our minds. If you have no electricity or no internet, you will be unable to participate in this or any other online organized activities, and if you have no gas for you car, you will be unable to make a trip to a proposed rally at your state capital.
Second: We are in search of strategies that will help us to gain leverage over the people and/or organizations with the power to change our circumstance. We have tried appealing to our representatives' sense of duty and moral obligation, by writing letters, sending emails, and making phone calls to their offices, and they have been unwilling to represent our interests. It has become clear to all of us that unless it is in their interest to do so, they will not act.
We must therefore come up with tactics to gain leverage over them, so that we may present situations were it is in their best interest to work on our behalf. For example: Many corporations use campaign contributions and lobbyist to gain leverage over those in public office. Thus, when public servants work on behalf of the interests of these corporations, there are at the same time working on behalf of there own interests.
Third:Ideas to generate publicity for our cause, and to increase our numbers. There is both power and safety in numbers. We will have more options, and the stradigies that we generate on the first and second fronts, will be more effective, if we can increase the number of those who participate.
The following is a list of instructions and bylaws for participation in this think tank:
- To make a suggestion or present an idea, post a comment to this post. Any and all ideas are welcome, as long as they are not blatantly illegal. If this site gets shut down by law enforcement or if we are sent to prison, we will have limited our options significantly. We should especially be trying to think of unconventional ideas that can be utilized by those of us with limited recourses. Vague ideas are also welcome, as we can refine these ideas through discussion.
- To express your thought on an idea, post a comment to that comment. Try to give your point of view on every idea and comment that you read. We all come from wide range of backgrounds, and have a wide range of expertise. We must use this to our advantage. Do as much research as you can before presenting an idea or making a comment. If for instance you believe that a particular strategy my be illegal or simply will not work, look it up and let us all know. If you are not sure about a strategy or an idea that you have in mind, say so in your post, someone else may have more knowledge on the subject than you do.
- Once again I must ask that you do not propose anything that is obviously illegal. The idea that we get our guns and go after an adversary is not a new one. We have all thought of that. We will be unable to do ourselves, each other, or our country any good if we are in prison or dead. However, we should not limit our tactics to what we consider to be moral. Our opposition has proven that they do not heed to morality or human decency. That is why we are here. They will not pull any punches and so we must not. This is an amoral, result oriented think tank.
- Please do not use this think tank as an outlet for you complaints about your situation or your disillusion with our government. There are many other places for that. This is a pragmatic discussion, founded for the purpose of creating solutions to our problems. I think that everyone that reads this is convinced that there is a problem with the system or they would no be here. Lets limit our conversations to ideas for fixing these problems. Also, this forum is a no troll zone. Comments posted by trolls will not be added. We will be able to accomplish more without their disruptions.
- After a strategy or tactic has been refined and scrutinized by this think tank, it will be categorized into one of the three sections, and added to a list that will be posted on another page on this website. This list can then be referenced by our "Organized Resistance" section, so that our regional organizations can use these tactics and strategies.
With our combined intelligence, knowledge, and experience, I am certain that we can accomplish our task.
– D. R. Gomez WA –